For families, it means doubling-up on errands and cutting out vacations.

For schools and government agencies, it's creating budget-busting spikes in transportation costs.

And for businesses across metro Birmingham, it's a flashback to four years ago, when skyrocketing pump prices tanked bottom lines.

On Friday, the average price of regular unleaded in the Birmingham area was $3.78, up from $3.75 a week ago and $3.58 a month ago, according to the AAA Daily Fuel Gauge Report.

While gas prices tend to rise every spring along with demand, this year's increase is especially dramatic, hovering about a quarter below the highest recorded average of $4.05 a gallon, set in September 2008.

Paying $4 a gallon for gas not only puts a crimp on transportation spending, it's also a psychological barrier that makes consumers hunker down in other areas, said Bob Robicheaux, a retailing expert and professor at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

"People just stop moving around as much all together," he said. "The spike in gasoline prices can cause a downturn in shopping at the malls and trips to the stores because people begin to question whether they want to travel 10 or 15 miles round trip to go explore what they might buy."

For Riverchase resident Renee Hamilton, a real estate agent and mom of three boys, that's been the case.

Instead of making extra trips to the grocery store during the day, she usually calls her husband, Jeff, and asks him to stop on his way home from work.

She also schedules her own work around her boys' schedule, combining her trips to pick them up at school with plans to drop off fliers or take photos of a house.

"With my job, it's a huge issue," she said. "I'm one that usually would pop out and meet somebody, and I was willing to show to somebody that wasn't pre-qualified."

But these days, with a job that requires crisscrossing the metro area every day, Hamilton makes sure potential buyers are pre-qualified before heading out.

And the family has made a big change, too. They canceled their annual trip to Indiana to see family and attend the Indianapolis 500 on Memorial Day weekend. Between gas prices and the cancellation of a flight that used to take them part of the way, it's just too expensive, she said.

"We're just trying to be more efficient as a whole," Hamilton said. "I stop and think more about being wasteful and being in the car. If I'm sitting there in carpool, I turn off the car."

Agencies' costs

Government agencies also are looking for ways to curb fuel costs, but some have little choice when it comes to paying them.

The Jefferson County school system, for example, has seen a 42.5 percent surge in fuel costs since August.

The most recent weekly fuel bill for the system's transportation department, which covers 400 buses and 35 to 40 service vehicles, was $57,000, said Della Baker, assistant director of transportation for Jefferson County Schools.

That's up from less than $40,000 the first week of school.

Every year, Baker said, the department tries to account for rising fuel costs in drafting budgets, but no one figured they would go this high.

The transportation department receives 75 percent of its funding from the state, and the rest is covered by local funds. Local funds will have to cover the higher fuel costs this year, she said, cutting in to classroom spending.

"They'll have to kick in local funds for us to make up the difference, so that's something else they won't be able to provide for students," she said.

Baker added that other items also are more expensive because of higher delivery costs.

That's also true for consumers, as the prices of groceries and other store-bought goods climb because of increased delivery costs.

Clay Ingram, spokesman for AAA Alabama, said gas prices are normally tied tightly to demand and supply. But demand is comparatively low --- at a 10-year low, in fact, during February and March -- and supply is good right now.

"It's a little concerning that we're seeing these high prices despite that situation ... the bottom line is crude oil is so high right now, and I think somewhat unjustifiably so," he said. "I wish I could say it's about to get better, but I'm afraid it's probably going to get worse before it gets better."

Crude is now more than $100 a barrel, when it probably should be in the $70 to $75 range, he added.

Prices will likely continue to creep up through the traditionally peak point of the year on Memorial Day weekend, but Ingram isn't sold on a record-breaking summer. The highest recorded Alabama average price for regular unleaded is $4.05 a gallon, the same as Birmingham's, set in September 2008.

"There's a chance we could break that record this year, but I'm not convinced it will happen," Ingram said. "If we do break that record, it won't be by much."

And while there are no guarantees, Ingram said the prospect of $5 to $6 a gallon gas is ridiculous.

"I feel very, very comfortable saying we will get nowhere close to $5 a gallon. I don't think we'll get close to $4.50, but you never know for sure. Honestly, I'll be surprised if we break the record," he said.

Mideast factor

Others, however, point out unknown factors, such as continued unrest in the Middle East and the U.S. presidential election.

"The biggest issue facing us all at this point is the unease throughout the Middle East and what impact that might have on the source of oil as we approach the summer and head toward a major election in this country," Robicheaux said.

Meanwhile, area residents and businesses are bracing themselves for more pain at the pump.

In a nod to the issue, The Rock Church sponsored a gas giveaway on Friday afternoon, giving away $10,000 worth of gas to motorists at three RaceWay stations in Bessemer, Hueytown and Tarrant.

Some businesses are adding fuel surcharges to deliveries that were once free, while others are making sure delivery trucks are full before sending them out.

At Contri Brothers Gift Baskets, which delivers gift baskets across the Birmingham area, high fuel costs have been an issue for several years, said Manager Scott Perry.

The small business has not passed the costs onto its customers, he said. Instead, it tries to be as efficient as possible in scheduling delivery routes.

"It's not exactly a new problem, but it's definitely a problem," he said.